Clara Klinghoffer was a British painter celebrated for her exceptional skill as a portraitist and figurative artist. Born in present-day Ukraine to Polish-Jewish parents, she moved to England as a child and displayed remarkable artistic talent from an early age. She studied at the Sir John Cass Institute, the Central School of Arts and Crafts, and later at the Slade School of Fine Art, where her abilities quickly gained recognition. By the age of nineteen, she had held a successful solo exhibition in London, earning widespread critical acclaim for her sensitive treatment of the human figure and mastery of draughtsmanship.

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Klinghoffer established herself as one of Britain's leading portrait painters, exhibiting regularly at major institutions including the Royal Academy and the New English Art Club. Her sitters ranged from artists and intellectuals to prominent public figures, and her work was acquired by important public collections.

The upheavals of the Second World War profoundly affected her life, leading to periods in Amsterdam, London, New York, and later Mexico. These experiences broadened her artistic outlook, inspiring landscapes and scenes of everyday life alongside her celebrated portraits. Although changing artistic trends temporarily overshadowed her work, Klinghoffer is increasingly recognised today for her technical brilliance, psychological insight, and significant contribution to twentieth-century figurative painting.